Sarah turned to Camille. “I left the cleaning supplies in the kitchen.”
Camille touched her arm. “Don’t worry. I’ll have the place cleaned in no time and I’ll stay out of Margaret’s way.”
“Thank you. I know this is above and beyond.”
Camille smiled. “It’s no trouble. And you did pay for my upcoming vacation.” Camille deserved the five-night six-day Key West vacation.
“If you want to extend your stay a couple extra days, just let me know.”
“That’s probably all the family time I can handle.” Camille was meeting her parents and they planned to spend the week together catching up.
Sarah wished she were only here for six days instead of six weeks. “Thank you again for driving all the way out here. I’m hoping Margaret doesn’t get as upset about the gardeners coming by later.”
Camille looked around the yard. “It’s not safe for the boys to be running around out here without cutting back the lawn and overgrown bushes.”
“Let’s hope she sees it that way.” Sarah glanced at the boys waiting in the car. “Gotta go. I don’t want to be late.”
“Don’t let Margaret or her lawyer get to you. You’re a great mom.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.” She didn’t think anything would change Margaret’s mind.
Sarah rushed to the car and made sure the boys were strapped in properly, then slid into the driver’s seat and drove down the long drive toward Luke’s place.
“I can’t wait to see the horsies,” Jack announced, his gaze focused on the road ahead.
“We’ll be there soon.” Already tired, she sucked in a deep breath, knowing even this day wasn’t going to end until well into the morning hours again.
She needed to reevaluate the hours she worked, because they left no time for herself. And the constant fatigue left her feeling perpetually drained, a little bit sick, and dragging.
When she arrived at the ranch, all thoughts of sleep and long hours vanished. The gorgeous land spread out in wide pastures and tree-covered hills. Well tended, all the buildings were white, including the main house. The stable was first-class and huge. The pastures were green and vast, some outlined by white fencing and dotted with beautiful grazing horses.
Luke lived on quite a spread. The main house stood two stories tall, white with dark blue shutters, and a wraparound covered porch. The garden out front was well tended and the plants bloomed profusely in shades of pink, red, and purple. The scent of gardenias from the main house walkway floated down to the barn.
She was so taken by the ranch that she didn’t register the noise coming from inside the barn until she’d gotten the boys out of the car.
“Mama, what’s that noise?” Jack started backing away from the stable and the sound of the distressed animal.
“It’s okay. That horse is just mad and letting everyone know it. Let’s go find Luke. He’s probably helping take care of the horse.”
The barn was massive with at least twelve stalls on each side of the wide center aisle. At the far end of the barn outside an open stall stood a very angry stallion. What surprised Sarah was the manner in which everyone was dealing with the distraught animal. Horses were emotional creatures and needed to be handled with patience and care.
She didn’t see Luke. Two men on each side of the horse held him with lead ropes, obviously trying to keep the animal under control while another man tried to get close to him without getting kicked or bit. Each time the man took a step close to the horse, he went nuts and tried to buck, pull, and otherwise get free and away from the men. Very dangerous.
The frustrated horse could injure himself and the men.
Sarah sat the boys on a bench outside an empty stall, far away from the angry beast. “Do not move.”
She walked down the long aisle toward the angry horse, singing a lullaby. At first, loudly, to get the horse’s attention. As she made her way toward the animal, she softened her singing and stopped five feet from him. He watched her intently. As did the surprised men. The horse’s ears pricked up and listened to her clear, soothing voice. He snorted and stomped, but kept his eyes on her.
One of the men backed up and got right in Sarah’s face. “What the hell are you doing? Can’t you see this animal is out of control?”
Sarah continued singing and sidestepped the man, so the horse could see her.
“Step back, Doc. Let her be.” Luke’s smooth, low voice rumbled like whiskey and the blues rolled together. It washed over her and sent an unfamiliar warmth through her whole body.
She’d felt him come up behind her before she’d heard him. She didn’t have time to think much about that because the angry horse in front of her demanded her full attention.
She continued to sing the lullaby and walked straight up to the horse’s head. He stomped and shook his head up and down. Sarah reached up and brushed a hand down the horse’s nose.
In her singsong voice she asked, “What’s his name?”
“Ace.”
“Hello, Ace,” she sang, then went on with the lullaby.
Luke’s anxious voice rumbled behind her again “He’s the backbone of this ranch. He’s a champion and worth a fortune. Nothing can happen to him.”
Still singing to the horse, she turned and looked at Luke. In that moment, she could see he not only needed the horse for his breeding program, but he loved the horse. She also noticed that her boys had moved up and were crowded behind Luke’s legs. They peeked at her and Ace from around him.
“What do you need done with Ace?”
Luke answered for the man, who must be the vet. “He needs some shots and one of the trainers noticed he’s favoring his left back hoof.”
The vet added, “He also has a cut on his hindquarter that may need stitching.”
Luke restrained his fury behind his clenched jaw. “He’s been cut?”
“I’m sorry, Luke. He’s out of control today and he hit his rump on the gate to the stall. It was his own damn fault. That horse has no sense, and he’s meaner than a rattlesnake.”
Sarah continued singing and rubbed both hands up the length of Ace’s nose. Once she got her arms to full length, she pulled Ace’s large head down and put her nose to his. She rubbed the sides of his head and stood nose to nose with him singing the lullaby. Ace began to calm and soon he wasn’t stomping, or fussing. After several choruses, she knew just when the horse had bonded with her when he nuzzled his nose against her cheek.
Still singing to Ace she stepped back, grabbed a brush from a nearby table, and began to work the brush over his gleaming coat. He stood still, but watched her carefully. She worked and worked, brushing and singing, calming him even more. Once she’d given Ace a good once-over, she turned back to Luke and found all four men silent and watching her.
It was quite a picture, turning around and seeing Luke holding the hands of both her boys. She’d never seen a prettier picture. The boys were safe in a man’s hands, and the fact that the man was as strong and gorgeous as Luke didn’t hurt either.
She’d provided them with everything they needed, except a good man in their life.
Tears filled her eyes and she quickly blinked them away.
Ace nibbled at her jeans pocket and bumped his big head against her back. Luke stepped forward thinking Ace was trying to hurt her.